Sen. Mitch McConnell secures industrial hemp in final version of Farm Bill

8:33 PM,
Jan. 27, 2014

A truck drives past bales of dried hemp on the premises of company Hanffaser Uckermark eG in Prenzlau, eastern Germany on July 27, 2013. The company with its 13 employees produces insulating material and animal bedding out of hemp, that is cultivated on an area of 300 hectares. AFP PHOTO / DPA / BERND SETTNIK +++ GERMANY OUT (Photo credit should read BERND SETTNIK/AFP/Getty Images)

Written by

Patrick T. Sullivan
pasullivan@courier-journal.com

The final version of the Farm Bill U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell is promoting would allow state departments of agriculture to cultivate industrial hemp in agricultural pilot programs in states that already permit the growth and cultivation of industrial hemp.

McConnell crafted the bill's language to give Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner James Comer flexibility to cultivate hemp for pilot programs in Kentucky, according to a news release.

Following Senate and House passage of their respective Farm Bills, McConnell appointed Senate Republicans to the 2014 Farm ...